Tow guide and tensioning assembly



May 31, 1966 J. E. SMlTHEY TOW GUIDE AND TENSIONING ASSEMBLY Filed Jan.24, 1964 INVENTOR JAMES E. SM/THEY 8Y2 X ATTORNJ United States Patent3,253,803 TOW GUIDE AND TENSIONING ASSEMBLY James E. Smithey, Decatur,Ala., assignor to Monsanto Company, a corporation of Delaware Filed Jan.24, 1964, Ser. No. 339,980 4 Claims. (Cl. 242-153) This inventionrelates to a tow guide and tensioning assembly. More particularly, thisinvention relates to a tow guide and tensioning assembly which may beadjusted to vary the amount of tension on a tow bundle of syntheticfilaments being advanced to a staple cutter and obtain a reproduciblelace-up thereby to improve the cutting quality of said filaments intostaple fiber.

In the textile industry today a majority of the processing machineryused by textile manufacturers for making end use products from man-madefibers require, prior to carding, fibers in uniform staple lengths. Ifthe synthetic filaments are not cut into uniform staple length, a poorerquality yarn is produced since the nonuniform lengths may cause slubs orknots to appear in the yarn. Thus, uni-form staple is required in themanufacture of high quality yarn on this type equipment. Moreover,because of the waste involved, staple fibers having uniform length maybe processed more efliciently on the conventional type processingmachinery used.

As will be recognized by anyone in the art, broken filaments, loosefilaments, slack selvage and non-uniform tension across the tow bundlemay contribute to longer and shorter staple than that which is desired.To eliminate all of these unsatisfactory conditions which contribute topoor cutting quality of synthetic filaments, the tow bundle must beguided along an extended path whereupon the bundle is properly supportedto accomplish a uniform tension and thereby safeguard against anylooping thereof.

The known apparatus used for guiding tow bundles are of two typesgenerally. One of these are designed to advance a tow bundle along asubstantially horizontal path, while the other known assembly isdesigned to advance a tow along an extended guide path whereupon theguide bars are spaced farther apart than in the first mentionedapparatus. The guide bars in the guide assembly having the shorter guidepath are spaced together closely to provide adequate support and controlover a bundle of filaments being advanced through the assembly. Anapparent disadvantage is encountered with this type assembly in that thetension on the tow bundle is not always uniformly distributed across allof the filaments therein because of the limited travel of the filamentsbetween the supply container and staple cutter. In the past, attemptshave been made todistribute a minimum uniform tension across the towbundle by increasing the length of the guide path without increas ingthe number of guide bars. Although the tension on the filaments is notexcessive in this type guide assembly, the tow bundle tends to sagbetween the remotely spaced guide bars thereby inducing a loopingcondition which occasionally damages the tow and is obviouslyobjectionable. With these problems in mind, it is a particular object ofthis invention to provide a novel tow guide and tensioning assemblyhaving a vertically extending guide path to provide auniform tension onthe filaments comprising a tow bundle to improve the cutting quality ofsynthetic filaments int-o staple fibers.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a novel apparatuscapable of attaining a reproducible lace-up on each denier size towbundle of synthetic filaments.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a new andimproved apparatus for obtaining a uniform tension on eachfilament in atow bundle.

Ice

Other objects of this invention will appear from a de tailed descriptionand the accompanying drawing in which A single figure illustrates aschematic view wherein a tow is fed over a tow guide and tensionassembly from a container to a staple cutter.

One embodiment of the present invention contemplates an invertedU-shaped structure extending upright and having a plurality of guidebars, preferably Alsimag having a plurality of guide bars, preferablyAlsimagcovered, selectively spaced around the said structure for guidinga tow ribbon along the path formed by the guide bars. A tension controlarm having a plurality of movable Alsimag-covered bars is mounted at oneside of the U-shaped structure, extending radially outward from saidU-shaped structure. A tow, which is advanced from a container'to theguide assembly, is laced-up around the Alsimag-covered bars mounted tothe upright guide assembly and the tension assembly. Thereafter, the towis passed through a poteye located at the outer end of the tensionassembly to converge the tow ribbon to a desired width prior to enteringthe staple cutter.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, there is shown a row ofselectively spaced Alsimag-covered bars 10 mounted between a pair ofsimilar U-shaped members 11 and 12, preferably tabricated from 6"channel iron. T hemembers 11 and 12 are mounted to a frame 13 and heldin an inverted upright position above the ground level. A U-shapedstructure is provided to increase the length of the guide path and yetconserve floor space. The overall length of the guide pat-h provided bythe U-sh-aped structure illustrated and described herein is 20 feet, theleg portions thereof being approximately twice the length of the baseportion. It is to be understood, however, that the guide path may bechanged without departing from the scope of the present invention bylengthening either the legs or the base parts of U-shaped members 11 and12.

A tensioning assembly 14 comprising members 15 and 16 is made integralwith a leg of the U-shaped structure and extends laterally therefrom.Alsimag-covered bars 10 having their axes along a single horizontalplane are located near each end of the laterally extending members -15and 16. Near the intermediate portion of member 15 there is spaced athin rectangular plate 17 having va plurality of slots 18 spaced alongthe upper edge of said plate. A similar plate 20 having slots 21 ismounted on the top side of member '16 and positioned so that whenrollers are placed in the slots =18 and 21 the rollers lie transverselyof members 15 and 16. At the outer end of members 15 and '16, a poteye2-2 is spaced between the said members.

One leg of the U-shaped guide assembly is. shorter than the other toaccommodate a tow container 23 placed directly thereunder having a towbundle 25 in the container for supplying a tow ribbon to a staple cuttervia the tow guide and tensioning assembly. The tow ribbon 25 is passedthrough a poteye 26 to the Alsimag-covered bars '10. As shown by thedrawing, the tow ribbon is laced along the ladder-like row ofAlsimag-covered bars 10 in a manner so that the tow passes on theopposite side of the adjacent bars. The group of three guide barsnearest poteye 26 are spaced closely together to guard against balls oftow or entangled portions of the tow ribbon which exist occasionally inthe supply container. It will be appreciated from the illustratedupright structure and lace-up arrangement thereof that the tow issubjected to frictional torces substantially lower than experienced witha conventional guide as sembly.

From the above description of the improved guide assembly illustrated,it will be understood that this arrangement will permit the individualfilaments to pass gently over the guide bars and provide adequatesupport for the filaments to prevent twisted conditions in the towribbon heretofor induced by looping or swirling conditions imparted tothe tow ribbon because of inadequate support thereof. This is explainedby the fact that only a nominal amount of friction exists between thetow ribbon and guide bars along the vertical portions of the guide path.Thus, the vertical sections of the guide assembly provide an extendedpath for the filaments to be properly oriented prior to cutting withoutincreasing the frictional forces substantially on the filaments andthusly avoid over 'tensioning the filaments; As will be recognized bythe trade, the amount of friction between the tow ribbon and guide barscan be reduced by lacing the ribbon over rfewer guide bars.

After tow ribbon 25 has advanced along the ladderlike path formed by the'U-shaped guide assembly, the tow is then laced along theAlsim-ag-covered bars, which are selectively spaced on the tensioningassembly 14, to poteye 22. The oval shaped design of the poteye causesthe tow ribbon to converge down to a narrow band. Thereafter, the tow isadvanced to a staple cutter, not shown, by godet roll 27.

The amount of tension required on tow ribbons varies between differentribbons. This variation is caused by change of denier size, moisturecontent and the like. Accordingly, the tension assembly 14 is designedto enable the operator to make the necessary adjustment by selectivelyspacing the guide bars longitudinally along the lengths of slottedplates 17 and 20. For example, the two Alsimag-covered bars shown can bespaced farther apart to increase the amount of tension applied to thetow ribbon, or additional bars can be used whereby a lace-up conditionis obtained. The adjustment is simple to make when a change in thetension on the tow ribbon occurs and can be made quickly to obtain areproducible lace-up of the tow. To reduce the tension on the tow ribbonto a minimum, all of the guide bars may be removed except one.

Although the invention has been described in considerable detail, suchdescription is intended as being illustrative rather than limiting,since the invention may be variously embodied, and the scope of theinvention is to be determined as claimed.

I claim:

1. A tow guide and tension combination:

(a) a frame,

(b) a first section mounted to the frame in an upright verticalposition,

() a second section connected to the upper end of the first section andextending outwardly therefrom along a horizontal plane,

(d) a third section connected to the second section at the end oppositethe first section and extending vertically downwardly, said secondsection being less than one half the length of said first and thirdsections to provide .an extended guide path in a confined floor-spacearea whereby a moving tow can be controlled with a minimum amount offrictional drag imposed thereon,

(e) a fouth section connected to the downwardly extending end of thethird section to form substantially a right angle therewith,-

(f) a plurality of cylindrical guide bars selectively spaced along thelongitudinal axes of each said section and transversely thereto, saidbars having axes which occupy a single plane with respect to eachsection,

assembly comprising, in

(g) means for advancing a tow laced on opposite sides of every otherguide bar, and

(h) means for varying the tension on the tow being advanced along theguide path.

2. A tow guide and tension assembly comprising in combination:

(a) aframe,

(b) a first section mounted to the frame in an upright verticalposition,

(c) a second section connected to the upper end of .the first sectionand extending outwardly therefrom along a horizontal plane,

(01) a third section connected to the second section at the end oppositethe first section and extending vertically downwardly, said first andthird sections being at least twice the length of said second section toprovide vertical portions of great length with respect to the horizontalportion,

(e) a fourth section connected to the downwardly extending end of thethird section to form substantially a right angle therewith,

(f) a plurality of cylindrical guide bars selectively spaced along thelongitudinal axes of each said section and transversely thereto, saidbars having axes which occupy a single plane with respect to eachsection to form a guide path,

(g) means for advancing a tow along the guide path,

'and

(h) a rtensioning assembly having a pair of slotted members mounted onthe fourth section, and

(i) a plurality of guide bars selectively spaced in aligning slots onthe slotted member to impart a tensioning effect to the tow.

3. In an apparatus for guiding a tow of continuous filaments along anextended path under minimum tension comprising:

(a) a first plurality of spaced parallel bars located in a first singlevertical plane,

(b) a second plurality of spaced parallel bars located in a secondsingle vertical plane, said first and second planes being parallel andin relatively close proximity to each other,

(c) a bar spaced between and parallel with the uppermost bar in eachvertical plane arrangement to provide 'a guide path for the tow,

(d) a third plurality of spaced parallel bars located in a horizontalplane and being adjacent to the lowermost bars of said second verticalplane to extend the guide path in a horizontal direction therefrom,

(e) at least one bar spaced above said third plurality of bars and beingremovable whereby the amount of tension on the tow can be varied, (f)means for converging the tow into a uniform fiat ribbon, and (g) drivenmeans for advancing a continuous tow laced on the oppositesides ofalternate bars from a supply container along the extended guide path ofsaid apparatus to properly align the continuous filaments for conversioninto staple fibers. 4. The apparatus of claim 3 wherein the first andsecond plurality of bars each consist of a group of at least 4 of saidbars.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,727,764- 9/1929Gibbs l9l57 2,031,430 2/1936 Schletter 242154 X 2,335,880 12/1943 Ouzts2828 2,981,498 4/1961 Yuryan 242-154 MERVIN STEIN, Primary Examiner.

S. N. GILREATH, Examiner.

1. A TOW GUIDE AND TENSION ASSEMBLY COMPRISING, IN COMBINATION: (A) AFRAME, (B) A FIRST SECTION MOUNTED TO THE FRAME IN AN UPRIGHT VERTICALPOSITION, (C) A SECOND SECTION CONNECTED TO THE UPPER END OF THE FIRSTSECTION AND EXTENDING OUTWARDLY THEREFROM ALONG A HORIZONTAL PLANE, (D)A THIRD SECTION CONNECTED TO THE SECOND SECTION AT THE END OPPOSITE THEFIRST SECTION AND EXTENDING VERTICALLY DOWNWARDLY, SAID SECOND SECTIONBEING LESS THAN ONE HALF THE LENGTH OF SAID FIRST AND THIRD SECTIONS TOPROVIDE AN EXTENDED GUIDE PATH IN A CONFINED FLOOR-SPACE AREA WHEREBY AMOVING TOW CAN BE CONTROLLED WITH A MINIMUM AMOUNT OF FRICTIONAL DRAGIMPOSED THEREON, (E) A FOURTH SECTION CONNECTED TO THE DOWNWARDLYEXTENDING END OF THE THIRD SECTION TO FORM SUBSTANTIALLY A RIGHT ANGLETHEREWITH, (F) A PLURALITY OF CYLINDRICAL GUIDE BARS SELECTIVELY SPACEDALONG THE LONGITUDINAL AXES OF EACH SAID SECTION AND TRANSVERSELYTHERETO, SAID BARS HAVING AXES WHICH OCCUPY A SINGLE PLANE WITH RESPECTTO EACH SECTION, (G) MEANS FOR ADVANCING A TOW LACED ON OPPOSITE SIDESOF EVERY OTHER GUIDE BAR, AND (H) MEANS FOR VARYING THE TENSION ON THETOW BEING ADVANCED ALONG THE GUIDE PATH.